Please edit the wiki page and make your contributions to the list below.

Vote for each topic that interests you, by adding your name or nickname to the votes

Add a new topic + description if you see something missing that you would like to see covered.

This page is intended to make the selection of future topics more democratic and meetings more popular. There was also an outline design for a monthly cron job processing topics, votes and offers of talks so as to aid in organising meetings, hence this quirky format. This list below is the result of pulling together several ideas from discussions and the Mailing List. It could use some more organisation.

It was introduced at the same time as the 'BeginnerLinks and List of Training Materials' within KnowledgeBase page, which you are also invited to contribute to.

It was proposed that topics be pitched to meet the needs + expectations of different audiences.

It is anticipated that we can find some good resources to meet the needs of the first 2 sections. You are all invited to contribute to the 'BeginnerLinks + List of Training Materials' within KnowledgeBase page to answer these topics.

2. Beginner

In addition to accumulating a list of links, these topics could be walked through and discussed on a repeating, seasonal basis to bring the knowledge to life. This would give newcomers a chance to get basic information about how to get started, and a chance to ask questions. It is anticipated that any PC literate users with more than 1 yrs experience of GNU/Linux will be able to talk through these topics and give advise based on their opinions in a simple conversation style. Some topics might benefit from some preparation to ensure the topic is covered to an adequate level, and in a balanced BBC like fashion.

Greasemonkey is a Firefox extension which lets you to add bits of DHTML ("user scripts") to any web page to change its behavior. In much the same way that user CSS lets you take control of a web page's style, user scripts let you easily control any aspect of a web page's design or interaction.

For example, you could: Make sure that all URLs displayed in the browser are clickable links Improve the usability of a site you frequent Route around common and annoying website bugs Use the Coral content network selectively (end quote about Greasemonkey)

3.9. Bittorrent clients

azureus is MUCH more 'fun' than plain old bittorrent - just look at the availability,details,swarm and pieces - [screenshots] !

3.10. OT: Organising stuff - classification / categorisation

Votes: AnthonyR

organising categorisation

how the web affects your classification structure

things to avoid

We commonly use hierarchies to organise information for efficient retrieval, and have the linux hierarchical filesystem at our disposal. But managing a lot of information in a hierarchy requires skill, or several years of training for certain professions. An example of how not to do it can be found in common file manager interface design. So how can we best organise our directory structures for our purposes? Worth discussing.

3.11. Boot loaders

Votes: FreakyClown

GRUB

LILO

That other OS's bootmanager with Linux (Yes, the one that OS uses. Seriously!)

How to create a multiboot system for both Linux and MS Windows

4. Server Topics

This section may not appeal to all computer users, but we will see when the votes come in. It may appeal more to those with an Administrators role and may require some significant research to prepare a body of knowledge that can be shared with the the rest of us. Hopefully some topics will coincide with the interests of one or more individuals and they will be able to talk knowledgeably. Any volunteers please make an entry on the TalksOffered page, thanks.

4.6. Package and/or config maintenance

Votes:Dominic

Tools such as Puppet, cfengine etc

Rolling out and maintaining packages across multiple servers

4.7. Asterisk

Votes:CasperGasper

5. Topics which fit a Study Group approach

Some topics are going to be beyond the experience of most of us, and these may require research work + investigation. We are all pressed for time, but this can be an approach where one plus one gives more than two. For some people working in a group is more efficient. This is a place to seek interest in a StudyGroup approach. This way we can work together as a group, and turn the exploration into a more sociable activity. Anyone interested please put their names below the topic or start a new page such as StudyGroup/AnExample for the study group to organise and make plans.

5.1. Plug-ins + Extensions for Firefox Browser

Votes:x,AnthonyR, FreakyClown

I think this is a good example of a pooling of effort that we have seen in the last few meetings.